Convertible camp bed and luggage carrier



Aug. 29, 1939. w. CHAMBERS CONVERTIBLE CAMP BED AND LUGGAGE CARRIERFiled Jan. 24. 1938 5' SheeiS--Shee'll 1 W. L. CHAMBERS CONVERTIBLE CAMPBD AND LUGGAGE CARRIER Aug. 29, 1939..

is sheets-sheet 2 Aug. 29, 1939. w. CHAMBERS v2,170,987

CNVERTIBLE CAMP BED AND LUGGAGE CARRIER l Filed Jan. 24, 1938 5Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Aug. 29, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE iCONVERTIBLE GMP BED AND LUGGAGE 4 Claims.

. This invention relates to a novel and'useful attachmentfor'automobiles adapted to be read? ily converted for use either as aluggage carrier or a camp bed. 1 l

An object of the present invention is to provide a device of the abovekind including .an eXtensible and collapsible bed frame hingedlymountedat one end upon the automobile bumper to swingrearwardly and downwardlyin position for use as a bed when desired, and to swing upwardly andforwardly when use of the device as a bed is not desired, means beingprovided Yto support the other or rear end of the bedframe when placedin either position, a luggage carrier or rack being carried by thefirst-'named or forward end of the bed frame in a position to projectrearwardly for receiving and supporting luggage when the bed lframe isin its upwardly and forwardly swung position.

More specifically, the present invention provides a device of theabovekind in which the supporting means for the rear end of the bed frame isadjustable in length to engageV the ground and support said rear `end ofthe Vbed frame at the desired elevation when ink its rearwardly anddownwardly swung position, .means being provided to releasably `connectsaid supporting means with the rear fenders of the automobileso as tosecure the bed frame in its forwardly and upwardly swung position whencollapsed.

A further vobject is to provide a device of the above kind including abed bottom removably associated with the bed frame, and means forplacing and securing the bed. bottom under longitudinal tension whenapplied to the bed frame with the latter extended and positioned foruse.

With the above and other objects in View, the present invention consistsin the novel form, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter morefully described, shown in the accompanying drawings and claimed.

In the drawings: g

Figure l is a View partly in side elevation and partly in sectionshowing the rear end of an auto-r mobile equipped with a convertible bedand luggage. carrier constructedy in accordance with the presentinvention, the device being disposedI for use as a bed. Y

Figure 2 is a top plan view` of the construction as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 1 with the device positioned foruse as a luggage carrier.

Figure 4 isy an end elevation looking toward the left of Figure l.

vbed frame, preferably of'tubular formand com- Figure 5 is a Viewsimilar to Figure 4 looking toward the other or forward end of thedevice as vit appears when positioned kas in Figure 1 but detached fromthe automobile. f

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary View part- 5 ly in elevation andpartly in'section, showing the connection between the sections of thefolding braces provided between the luggage carrier and the bed frame. V1

Figure 7 is a fragmentary sectional view of a portion of the devicepositioned as in Figure 3, showingmore clearly the manner of hinging thebed frame to the automobile bumper.

Figure 8 is a fragmentary View partly in plan and partly in longitudinalsection, showing the manner in which the side rails of the bed frame Yare constructed of telescopic sections, and illustrating the means forplacing and securing the bed bottom under longitudinal tension. Y

Figure 9 is .a side elevational View of the construction as shown inVFigure 8 with'the lever of the tensioning meansA raised. Figure 10 s afragmentary vertical longitudinal section taken on line Ill- I0 ofFigure 2; and Figure l1 is a View similar to Figure 10 taken on linelI-,-II of Figure 2. v Referring in detail to the drawings, theillustrated embodiment of thev present invention includes a.longitudinally extensible and collapsible posed of end rails 5 and' 6and side rails Veach consisting of .telescopically associated sections land la. Hinged at opposite endsV of the rear end rail 6 of the bedfframeare supporting legs which are adjustable `in length and each composed oftelescopically associated sections ii and 8a havingrneans including awing nut 9 for securing them inadjusted relation. These supporting legsare hinged to swing about axes coincident with the longitudinal axis ofend rail E;

Means is yprovided for mounting the ,other or forward end of, the bedframe upon the rear bumper I0' of an automobile generally indicated latIl, and this means preferably consists of bearings I2 attached to thebumper IU near the ends-of the latter and rotatably receiving theforward endY rail 5 Vofv the. bedy fr ame'jV adjacent the ends of saidrail 5; Each 'bearing I2 consists of a splitsleeve bolted for Vlateraltilting movement as at I3 Vto aneye I4 providedV on the upper end of astem I5, stem I5 being vertically disposed at they forward side ofbumperIll and beingsecured thereto by means lof a U-clam'p I6` having thestem` I5 passed through'fthelegs thereof and secured by means of aL nutIl threaded on the lower end of stem I5 beneath the lower leg of saidclamp I6. In this way and by this means, the bed frame is mounted sothat the same may be swung rearwardly and downwardly to a susbtantiallyhorizontal position when the device is desired for use as a bed, asillustrated in Figures 1 and 2. Also, the bed frame may belongitudinally collapsed and swung rearwardly and upwardly to theposition shown in Figure 3 when use of the device as a Vbed. is notdesired. In the first position, the legs 8, 8a, may be swung to aposition so as to extend downwardly from the rear end of the bed frameand engage the ground for supporting said rear endof the bed,`

frame at the desired elevation. On the other hand, when the bed frame iscollapsed andswungto the position of Figure 3, it may be sustained inthat position by the legs 8 and 8a., provision being made for detachablyconnecting -the free ends of legs 8, 8a with the rear fenders I8 of theautomobile. This is'accomplished by providing the fenders I8 with eyebolts I9 in which are releasably engageable the laterally directed freeends of the outer sections 8a of. said legs. I'hese laterally directedends 20 may be readily engaged in the eyes of bolts I9 or disengagedtherefrom by simply springing the outer leg sections 8a laterally. Inorder to sustain the legs 8, 8a in a vertical position when disposed asin Figure l to support the rear end ofthe bed frame, I providedetachable braces 2| extending diagonally between the intermediateportion of the rear end rail 6 and the lower end of the inner sections 8of said legs, the braces 2| being a detachably engaged at their lowerends beneath the wing nut 9 and being pivoted at 22 at their upper endsto an angle bar 23 removably associated with the rear end rail 6 as willbe presently described.

Arranged between and hinged at its forward end to the side rails of thebed frame adjacent the forward end of the latter is a luggage rack 2liwhich may be disposed flush with the side Y rails when not in use byswinging the same upwardly and forwardly between said side rails of thebed, frame from the position of Figure 3, or which may be disposed toproject. rearwardly Vfrom the bed frame to act as a luggage carrier whenswung rearwardly and downwardly to the position of Figure 3. ThisVluggage rackl is pref'- erably in the form of a grid provided with amarginal reinforcing flange and provided at suitable points along itsmarginal flange withr strap.- receiving loops 25 toy facilitatestrapping 0I.y luggage on said rack. The hinge for the rack 24' isindicated at 26, and foldable braces 21 areprovided between the freeouter or rear end of rack 24 and the side rails of the bed frame so asto sustain the rack 24 in` outwardly swung position as shown in Figures1 and'3. As shownv more clearly. in Figure 6, the braces 21 may consistof hingedly connected sections, the inner end of one section beingpivoted to the other sec-V tion at a point removed from the inner endof` the latten as at 28, the rst-named section being provided with asliding sleeve 29 which may be disposed over the .overlapping ends ofsaid brace sections tomaintain them in alinement and bracing relation.By sliding the sleeve 29 off of the adjacent projecting end of the bracesection having the pivot 28 removed from its inner end, the sections maybe swung relative to each other for collapsing the braces and permittingthe rack 24 to swing upwardly be-k tween the side rails of the bed frameout of the lever 36 when in use.

way when not in use. It will be noted that when the rack 24 isoperatively disposed or in its outwardly swung position, it may be usedto support the forward end of the bed frame in case the latter isdetached from the automobile bumper, thus permitting use of the bed whenit is desired to use the automobile without disturbing the occupant of'the bed or without maving the bed fromi the point where a camp has beenmade.

'I'he present invention also includes a bed bottom which may consist ofa sheet of canvas 30 having transverse bars 3| and 23 connected to theopposite ends thereof by means of a series of helical tension springs 32and 33, respectively. The bar 3| is provided with a plurality to engageover the forwardV end rail 5 of the bed" frame for connecting theforward end of the bed bottom to vsaid frame. 'Ihe rear end rail YI5 isprovided with rearwardly projecting pins arranged to be received inperforations provided in the rear depending flange of bar 23 whereby thelatter is detachably connected to the rear end rail 3 of the bed frame.It will thus be seen that the bed bottom may be readily applied orremoved as occasion demands.

Means is. provided for causing additional longitudinal extension of thebed frame after the bed bottom has been applied thereto' so as to placeand secure the bed bottom under longitudinal tension whereby it will notunduly sag when "in use. hinged to the inner end of each side -railsection 'I ofthe bed frame and has a link 31 pivoted thereto as at 38near the pivoted end of said lever 36, ythe link'3'i having a pin' 39adopted for selective engagement in any desired one ofra longitudinalseries of openings 4D provided in the adjacent portion of the associatedside rail section 7a. Thus, if the bed bottom is applied to the bed.frame with the latter extended so-that the bed bottomwill besubstantially taut, downward pressure upon the levers 33 will result inadditional extension ofV the bed frame so as to place the bed bottomunder sufficient longitudinal tension to prevent sagging of said bedbottom when occupied by a sleeper. Of course, the lever 33 Vand link 31operate on the toggle lever principle, the link diverging relation tothe lower pivoted end of The free end of each lever 36 has a laterallyextending curved eX tension 4I adapted to abut and snugly embraceV theadjacent side rail section 'la for limiting the downward swingingmovement of said lever to a position wherein the same is'alined with theside rail sections l and la. The pivot 33, when the lever 36 is disposedin downwardly swung position, is disposed slightly below the pin 39 or aline intersecting 'said pin and the pivot 42ofl1eyer 33, therebyinsuring that theV lever 36 will remain in "its, downwardly swungVposition until manually raised for partially collapsingV the bed' frameand permitting removal of the bed bottom. In thelatter operation, thehooks 34 are simplyY disengaged from the end rail 5, whereupon the bar23 is disengaged from pins 35 pursuant to disconnection of the braces 2Ifrom the legs 8, 8a. f

From the foregoing description, it is believed that the construction andmanner of use, aswell as the advantages of the present invention, willberreadily understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art. WhileI have disclosed specific details of whatis now believed to be thepreferred- For this purpose, a lever 36 is 3l' being disposed inembodiment of the p-resent invention it will be apparent that theinvention is susceptible of minor changes and other specific embodimentswithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.Braces 2'! are preferably adjustable in length so that the luggagerackmay kbe readily adjusted to a horizontal position regardless of the typeof automobile on which the invention is installed. For this purpose,pivot 28 may be removable and may be entered in any desired one of alongitudinal series of openings 28a provided in one section of brace 21.

What I claim as new is:

1. In combination with a motor vehicle having rear mud guards and a rearbumper, a longitudinally extensible and collapsible bed frame pivotallymounted at its forward end upon said rear bumper for rearward anddownward swinging movement to a substantially horizontal position foruse when extended, and rearwardly and upwardly to a susbtantiallyupright position when collapsed and not required for use, rearsupporting legs for said bed frame pivoted to the latter upon transverseaxes so as to permit said legs to extend forwardly and downwardly tosaid rear mud guards when the bed frame is in the secondnamed position,and means to detachably connect said legs to the mud guards forretaining the bed frame in said second position.

2. In combination with a motor Vehicle having rearI mud guards and arear bumper, a longitudinally extensible and collapsible bed framepivotally mounted at its forward end upon said rear bumper for rearwardand downward swinging movement to a substantially horizontal positionfor use when extended, and rearwardly and upwardly to a substantiallyupright position when collapsed and not required for use, rearsupporting legs for said bed frame pivoted to the latter upon transverseaxes so as to permit said legs to extend forwardly and downwardly tosaid rear mud guards when the bed frame is in the second-named position,and means to detachably connect said legs to the mud guards forretaining the bed frame in said second position, a luggage rackpivotally mounted between the sides of the bed frame near the forwardend of the latter for swinging movement to a substantially horizontalrearwardly projecting position for use when the bed frame is in saidsecond-named position.

3. In combination with a motor Vehicle having rear mud guards and a rearbumper, alongitudinally extensible and collapsible bed frame pivotallymounted at its forward end upon said rear bumper for rearward anddownward swinging movement to a susbtantially horizontal position foruse when extended, and rearwardly and upwardly to a substantiallyupright position when collapsed and not required for use, rearsupporting legs for said bed frame pivoted to the latter upon transverseaxes so as to permit said legs to extend forwardly and downwardly tosaid rear mud guards when the bed frame is in the second-named position,means to detachably connect said legs to the mud guards for retainingthe bed frame in said second position, a luggage rack pivotally mountedbetween the sides of the bed frame near the forward end of the latterfor swinging movement to a substantially horizontal rearwardlyprojecting position for use when the bed frame is in said second-namedposition, and foldable braces for sustaining the luggage rack in saidhorizontal position for use or permitting upward and forward swingingmovement of the luggage rack to a position between, the sides of the bedframe when not required for use.

4. In combination with a motor vehicle having rear mud guards and a rearbumper, a longitudinally extensible and collapsible bed frame pivotallymounted at its forward end upon said rear bumper forrearward anddownward swinging movement to a substantially horizontal position foruse when extended, and rearwardly and upwardly to a susbtantiallyupright position when collapsed and not required for use, rearsupporting legs for said bed frame pivoted to. the latter upontransverse axes so as to permit said legs to extend forwardly anddownwardly to said rear mud guards when the bed frame is in thesecondvnamed position, means to detachably connect said legs to the mudguards for retaining the bed frame in said second position, a luggagerack pivotally mounted between the sides of the bed frame near theforward end of the latter for swinging movement to a substantiallyhorizontal rearwardly projecting position for use when` the bed frame isin said second-named position, foldable braces for sustaining theluggage rack in said horizontal position for use or permitting upwardand forward swinging movement of the luggage rack to a position betweenthe sides of the bed frame when not required for use, said luggage rackbeing adapted to support the forward end of the bed frame when swungoutwardly from between the sides of the latter with the bed framedetached from the bumper.

, WILLIAM L. CHAMBERS.

